A short reading today, but an enormous concept…
They say “good things come in small packages”…and in this case they’re right. There are only three verses to the 133rd psalm, but it speaks volumes. God bestows His blessing of eternal life upon brothers who live together in unity. God’s wonderful gift isn’t given to the violent or disruptive. Remember that David himself was not allowed to build the Lord’s temple? God said it was because his hands had shed blood…he was a man of violence, and that disqualified him from building it. It didn’t mean that God was upset with David, quite the opposite in fact. God loved David and referred to him as a “man after his own heart”. It’s just that peace, and peace loving people receive blessings that are not available to the violent.
God lives in community within the Trinity. There is no contest of wills there, no hurt feelings, no anger, no violence. God lives in perfect peace, in perfect communion with Himself…and blesses us when we are able (in our human way) to emulate that behavior.
In order to live together in unity you will have to be forgiving. You will have to consider the needs of others to be more important than your own at times. You will have to be humble, so you can learn from others. Humility will allow you to exhibit mercy, realizing that the failings you see in others could just as easily be your failings. To live together in unity is to love the other person in spite of their faults.
Everyone says they want to live together in unity, but what most really want is to live in peace on their own terms. As soon as we say “on my terms” unity begins a downward spiral.
I wonder if there are ways in which my behavior contributes to disunity…for instance, when I am selfish, or hang onto past hurts…even as I know they weren’t intentional. I suppose there is a time for “unity” to be disrupted, for example, when someone wants to remain sinful but still be connected to the body. That in itself would disrupt the unity.
Here’s a pleasant thought: God wants to be in communion with me, I don’t think He wants a dictator relationship, but rather an exchange, or a partnership. We are meant to be family…God and me. And in Christ, the same is true for all believers…we should be able to exchange ideas and dreams, aspirations and doubts…without fear of judgment, ridicule or punishment.
If that could happen….goodbye war. goodbye to most politics. goodbye to hunger, poverty, starvation….perhaps even many diseases. Wow.
Faithfully,
PR